At Kolibri Company, we love nature. We embrace nature to unwind and to create a place at home where you can relax, feel good, and be happy. To get even more strength and peace from within, you can start with gratitude. The power of gratitude in a nutshell? Being grateful has a positive effect on our state of mind. Are you wondering how to start and what you are grateful for? In this blog, we explain the power of gratitude and how you can get started with it.
What is the meaning of gratitude
Gratitude means that you are happy with something and take a moment to reflect on it. Starting with gratitude helps you to be positive. It is a way to become aware of the beautiful things in life, and especially in your life. Various studies have shown that being grateful for something and becoming aware of it ensures an improvement in mental and physical health.
What does gratitude do for a person, listed?
- Makes you look at life more positively
- Makes you happier
- Reduces stress
- Strengthens emotional resilience
- Encourages you to take good care of yourself
- Improves sleep
Examples of what I am grateful for
Being grateful comes in different forms: you are grateful for a person, something material, or an experience. Don’t just think of big things, but of small things that evoke happiness. Do you have a loyal four-legged friend at home who makes you happy? Or does a long walk in the woods make you happy? There are different ways to show gratitude; this can be towards yourself or also towards another person.
What else does gratitude do to your brain? Receiving or expressing gratitude produces happiness hormones: dopamine and serotonin. Dopamine ensures that nerve cells communicate with each other, which is important for certain functions of the nervous system, such as movement, mood, and motivation. Serotonin improves our mood and sense of happiness, but also has a positive influence on our memory, sleep, and self-confidence.
Starting with the power of gratitude
How can you teach yourself to be grateful for things? With the following 5 tips, you can start with the power of gratitude today.
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Tip 1 – Write down gratitude
Why write down gratitude? As humans, we are constantly thinking. By writing down gratitude, you reflect on what makes you happy, what makes you feel good, and you learn to appreciate things in your life more. You become more aware of this. Grab a nice notebook or book, create a pleasant corner to write in, and give yourself the time to write something down. Make a short or long list every day of what you are grateful for, for example, because you saw someone again after a long time, you have a beautiful orchid in your home, or you had a nice day at work.
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Tip 2 – Make a gratitude playlist
No time to write down gratitude or would you rather not write something down? No problem. By listening to music, we evoke memories in our brain. Listening to music with a beautiful memory or playing your favorite music increases dopamine levels in the brain. Create a gratitude playlist via Spotify or another music streaming service and listen to it whenever you want. You can also listen while writing down gratitude, of course.
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Tip 3 – Hang up post-its
Why only write down gratitude in a notebook? Write positive notes on post-its and stick them in places in the house where you walk past. Which character trait do you like about yourself? What do you find beautiful about yourself? These are some examples you can write on a post-it. This way, you learn to appreciate yourself more and be grateful for yourself when you read the post-it.
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Tip 4 – Speak gratitude out loud
Encourage people around you to feel grateful and become aware of it. Are you grateful that someone is your colleague, friend, or neighbor? Tell them this or explain what you are satisfied with and ask what they are grateful for. Research has shown that people who express gratitude to each other feel more positive, but also more at ease.
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Tip 5 – Gratitude meditation
The power of gratitude is about focusing on what gives you positive energy. Meditation is an exercise that helps you be grateful for things in your life. Start in a comfortable position, this can be sitting or lying down, and breathe deeply. After this, you can start visualizing the things you are grateful for. You can do this on your own or with a guided meditation that you can follow online (via YouTube or Spotify).
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